One of the main objectives Donald Trump presented upon his return to the presidency was initiating mass deportations throughout the country, sending immigrants who have entered the United States illegally back to any country that will accept them, regardless of origin. According to NBC, as of February 34rd, The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency has arrested 8,768 people, and stated that they plan to deport between 1,200 and 1,400 immigrants a day. This alarming number is expected to continuously increase as his term continues.
This hardship is severely affecting the Bay Area’s community. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also known as ICE, has begun appearing in Oakland communities and schools, and entire families are fearing for their lives. Trump’s administration has issued directives allowing immigration authorities to start making arrests within schools, an act that was previously prohibited by law. Faced with the looming threat of deportation, immigrant students are apprehensive to attend school for fear of compromising their ability to remain in the U.S. However, schools are taking cautionary measures to support them. According to The Oaklandside, some of these measures include pushing schools to share resources such as red cards, holding workshops, training staff, and partnering with protective organizations such as the Unity Council to help families who may be struggling.
In fact, Bishop O’Dowd has been working diligently to ensure the safety of their students, especially those who may have immigration troubles. O’Dowd’s Director of Equity and Belonging, Armando Diaz explained, “Every school like ours has put together an ICE raid protocol. As a private school, we do not collaborate with ICE at all and we do not consent to their services. If they ever did show up, they would be met by me, security, the principal, and our president.”
Furthermore, he began to discuss where there is access to resources for students who are struggling or if they know someone who is. To that he responded, “Resources for students and faculty are posted on our schools Libguide. In the coming days, additional resources will be posted on Schoology. These include information on how to help our community, how to inform yourself about your rights, and links to additional organizations if one needs more help. Red cards are also available in the library, which indicate rights and ways to defend oneself if ICE ever approached them.” With that said, O’Dowd is doing many things to help and support immigration in its community. If you or anyone you know ever needs assistance, do not be afraid to talk to any adult on campus or use one of the resources in the library or the Libguide, which is linked below.
Libguide Link: https://libguides.bishopodowd.org/libraryhomepage
